Approved Action Research on Internet Safety

This is the latest version of my action research and it took several stages to have it approved. I know this won't be the last one. All your comments are welcome and I will try to share my findings during the process.

The action research will kick off after spring break vacations. Most of the practice will be performed at the school lab and we will be offering the students after school lab hours to allow more interaction time. To simulate real life scenarios we will suggest some sites to access sources that normally are blocked.  Specific web sites could be unblocked at the district level for short periods of time and we will be working to have them ready before their practice.  Since school networks are always controlled and restricted we will try to emulate some scenarios. At this moment the Edmodo, an educational social networking program, is a possible choice to let the students acquire some experience for the real world wide web social networks.

Action Research Draft on Internet Safety

The attached image has my Action Research Draft on Internet Safety. Please, take a look and let me know your comments.

Finding your wondering

After thinking about it, I came to the conclusion that a wondering could be explained as an internal reflection of the teacher, administrator or leader who consciously observe, analyze and define a solution to a problem.  The process starts with a particular event that needs to be address and modification are considered to improve the results. To be able to define a wondering demands the knowledge of many factors like staff development, curriculum, teachers and students, the culture of the school, how the leader is perceived, school performance and the social environment too. Once the wondering has been target and action research plan is consider as a option for the improvement. Sometimes this wondering can evolve and become complex, but that is no unusual when you are on the look for excellence

How educational leaders might use blogs?

Educational leaders could take advantage of this web based tool. Not only they could publish their findings by adding any sort of media but they could create a network of inquirers for data acquisition. A network of educators could find it useful too as a way to share, exchange ideas, and get feedback from colleagues. 

Action Research

I understand action research as a methodology used to correct a problem in the school environment. This methodology can be describe as a cycle of reflections and actions. Teachers and administrators could define an issue, and a plan to solve it must be defined.  The teacher put in practice those steps. At the end of the time frame, data is analyzed. If necessary modifications on the plan are made and must be executed again. One important advantage to consider on this process would be the absolute disposition of the teacher to modify their practice since they are an important component on the process.

 As a teacher, I could think of several opportunities to use action research.  Standards from 3rd to 5th grade require the students to successfully complete the state TAKS tests to be promoted. I could use district assessment and school data to target the lowest population and define a plan for improvement. This could be applied for subjects like Math, Reading and Writing. The plan could be used specifically to target that group during tutorials, small group instruction or centers.

 Another  application could be the effective use of technology in the classroom. Not only the use of the equipment but the mastery of the skills. By using several defined practices  the students could become familiar with the equipment and by using a software platform they could acquire knowledge on a subject. At the end, students could demonstrate knowledge by developing a project. Students who can't complete the assignment could have a remediation process were skills to be reinforced are practiced. Later they could re-do their work. By having this information  filed, teachers could define a better process for their students in the following years.

Course Reflections EDLD 5306

What outcomes had you envisioned for this course? Did you achieve those outcomes? Did the actual course outcomes align with those that you envisioned?

This course was called Concept of Educational Technology and when I read the title, it came to me the idea that it was going to be some kind of overview. As an overview, you normally expect subjects to be covered lightly and with some examples but no practice or outcomes to achieve. I did get what I was expecting,  I believe the course gave me that and more. It cover information that never cross my mind could be part of the content. The alignment is correct, go through the basis and cover some areas in detail. Well, detail  is not the word. I believe is the practice that makes the difference. The fact that you read, practice and then develop a product helps to reinforce part of the information read or seen. Somehow I knew that internet tool were going to be covered and the content was appropriate to my expectations.

To the extent that you achieved the outcomes, are they still relevant to the work that you do in your school? Why or why not?

The extent was good but was not target to be used immediately into the classroom environment. Simply because some of the examples are general, many choices and possibilities to answer. I will use most of them to enrich my students learning. Relevant it is at some degree. I could use some of those applications that I have practiced to develop activities to engage my students into something new. I know that this will keep them interested and they will learn too. The development of ideas to introduce content might delay this process. Then we come to the point, I know how to use it and I recognize that using them could help my students, but not sure how to introduce the content. The reason that it couldn't be relevant is simply because no curricula specifically covers o target the advances of technology at this level for my students. The benefit could be expected in the future years.

What outcomes did you not achieve? What prevented you from achieving them?

The content, is not totally achieved. The reason has to be the amount of information and the short amount of time to cover. To be concrete, I would say the standards require more study. I know where to find them but at this time my knowledge is general. Standards are not required for my actual function and there are vague if not apply immediately. Definitely are important and I would go in detail if I need them. Some of the tools were designed to collaborate and we didn't do effectively. It took time to lost the fear of the unknown. I feel more confident now and I'm sure we will collaborate efficiently in the coming courses. Another one could be my blog and wiki. The blog needs more interaction and my wiki appearance is not the best one. The way I see it, all I needed was more time to practice.

Were you successful in carrying out the course assignments? If not, what prevented or discouraged you?

I believe I was successful to deliver most of my assignments. To me, my limitation are my work and my family. They both require some of my attentions and that limits my time to study and the time to prepare my assignments. My week was planned to do my study during the night and by them I was a extremely tired. I did my best to read my articles and watched the videos. Noticed that readings were a great background for the assignments and I did cover all of them. I wasn't discouraged at all. I felt a bit nervous at the beginning since it is my first time having and online education. Then overwhelmed by the amount of work . Finally, relief at the end of the first week. My grade was not the best but gave me something important, confidence. My schedule took shape and I did stay on task day by day.

What did you learn from this course…about yourself, your technology and leadership skills, and your attitudes?

I thought I had a good understanding of the educational technology and this course made me realize that it wasn't true. My use of internet tools is limited when it comes to classroom applications and I must follow the rules to be able to teach my students. The importance to educate of the potential dangers of the technology and how responsible we need to be when handling information . About me, I still have that desire to learn and it was good to feel it. Make me realize how my students feel, well, at least some of them. I must focus on develop my leadership skills, I can see from my plan that I need to educate me and practice more. When it comes to technology, I finally understood that is not just the equipment but the how to use it to make students learn and be prepared for the uncertainties of the future. 

N.S.E. Technology Plan: E-rate

Executive Summary.

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